Uckfield was worst hit in bins fiasco

Uckfield appeared to bear the brunt of the “appalling” refuse and recycling bins emptying services in recent weeks.

The service provided Wealden District Council’s contractor, Kier, was slammed by a senior district councillor, who represents Uckfield Central on the council.

Cllr Claire Dowling said the bad situation had been made much worse because of the heatwave.

Kier

She told Uckfield town councillors on Monday (July 30): “I, as many of you and an awful lot of Uckfield residents, were hit by the appalling service from Kier over the last five weeks.

“What made it worse was the hot weather; flies, smells and everything else.

“Kier has put a recovery plan in place and – I hope I am not tempting fate – but in the last week it does seem to have settled down.”

Missed bins

Cllr Dowling, who is a member of Wealden’s Cabinet, said if a collection was missed residents should tell the council as quickly as possible, rather than wait to see if it going to be picked up.

“We need to be aware of any situation like this starting up again as soon as possible.

“Unfortunately, Uckfield was the worst hit in Wealden. It was appalling, absolutely appalling.”

Reporting time

Town councillor and former Mayor, Louise Eastwood, queried the need to report missed bins by 5pm on the due day of collection saying this was impossible for many residents. She said it was possible to report via the district council’s Facebook page but said the “cut off point of five o’clock was not adequate for Uckfield”.

Cllr Dowling said it was not just Uckfield residents bringing up such issues. “I am sure that came up time and time again in the last few weeks and there a lot of things they will be looking at,” she said.